Affable
guitar hero and power pop legend Pat Buchanan sparkles and shines on
his
new self-titled debut.

Pat
BuchananPat
BuchananIndiscreet

Fans
of the
Idle Jets will find much to love here, but, thanks to the Jets' former
frontman's musical growth spurt, the songs are more effortless and
melodic.
Thanks to help from Swan Dive's Bill DeMain (who co-wrote all the songs
with Buchanan) and Molly Felder (who adds her smooth vocals to Luckiest
Girl) with Brad Jones producing, how could it not be a power pop
classic?

It
may be pop,
but it's far from bubblegum. Glass is surely the album's
most
moving moment, blending acoustic guitars, Greg Morrow's instinctive
drumming
and a small but incredibly beautiful orchestra courtesy of Chris
Carmichael.
Pat's voice is pleading, warm and above all, honest.

Balancing
the
album's easygoing wistfulness are, indeed, a few worthwhile
rockers.
Badfinger is resurrected on Love Goes Up In Smoke and the incredibly
radio-friendly
The World Is Flat. The album's focus, however, is mostly on
laidback, lush pop songs with acoustic guitars, strings, bass
harmonicas,
flutes and vibes.

If
you prefer
your Beatlesque pop a little harder, you won't have to wait
long.
A sequel, which will reportedly mix in all-electric high-octane rockers
with even more psychedelic and orchestral ballads (think XTC's Apple
Venus
I plus Wasp Star) is on the way in a few months. In the
meantime,
do check out this excellent record, available at www.notlame.com and
www.milesofmusic.com.